Saturday, November 28, 2009

Chandra & Magic

Chandra has spent the day with her buddy Magic. Next week Magic will be
flying to Portugal to be with his family there. It's going to be really
sad to see him go! My family has been watching Magic since he was 4
months old, he's 7 now. Magic and Hiltie my 2nd puppy grew up together
and since then Magic has been friends with Chandra, McKenna, Omeeka and
Milano. There's a lot of videos and pictures of Magic growing up on this
page. It's going to be really sad to see him go!

Saturday, November 21, 2009

McKenzie goes off to college

Chandra and Randy's puppy McKenzie went off to college at CCI NW today!
She's such a beautiful and smart dog, we all hope she does well!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Happy 7th Birthday Hiltie!!!





HAPPY BIRTHDAY Hiltie!!!!

Hiltie was my 2nd puppy born to OMSI x Taiko. From the first time I saw her at 4 weeks old I fell in love, she was the BEST puppy to raise and I am so thankful for the time I had with such an amazing dog. Hiltie graduated as a Skilled Companion, there was no doubt she would graduate. LOVE you always Hiltie!

Monday, November 16, 2009

Lemonade for CCI



Article from newsday.com

For four years, Kyle Orent and his fundraising lemonade stand have been a familiar sight around his hometown of Northport. He's the cute kid philanthropist who managed to squeeze tens of thousands of dollars in charitable donations from thirsty folks who needed an ice-cold drink.

Beginning at age 7, Kyle took his stand to local sports games and the annual Cow Harbor Race. He didn't charge for the drinks, but encouraged donations. He raised $20,000 the first year, his mother, Kathy, said. After four years of mashing lemons and auction sales, he's collected $115,000, all for Canine Companions for Independence, a nonprofit organization that trains dogs to help people with disabilities.

But Kyle's 11 now and a sixth-grader at Northport Middle School, and the lemonade stand has begun to cramp his legs, not to mention his almost-teenager style.

"I'm getting older," he said Thursday night, before accepting a "Local Heroes" award from Bank of America, in a ceremony at the Long Island Children's Museum in Garden City.

The award, which includes $5,000 donated to the recipient's favorite charity, honors community leaders who contribute significantly to the health of their neighborhood. The bank also donated nearly $450,000 in unrestricted funding to local nonprofit organizations.

Kyle is the youngest recipient in the six years the award has been given, said a bank spokeswoman. He says he wants to be a fundraiser when he grows up. His hero is real estate magnate and TV star Donald Trump.

Why Trump? "He always has a Plan B," Kyle said. "After I sold lemonade, auctions were my Plan B."

Kyle sold his own toys in an online auction, according to his Web site, kyleslemonade.org. He also writes to celebrities such as baseball great Hank Aaron, asking them to autograph dog collars. He auctions the collars on eBay's "Giving" charity site.

Almost a third of the money Kyle raised came from the lemonade stand, and the rest from auctions and matching donations from individuals and corporations.

And he hasn't totally given up on exchanging big glasses of lemonade for big bucks. His mother, Kathy, said Kyle's hoping to recruit younger kids to carry on the lemonade tradition.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Demo at CSUS

Last semester I was walking to class with Akeelah and a professor
stopped me and asked if I would come to her class to do a demo sometime,
I said of course. Last semester I went with a group of other assistance
dogs and people showing adaptive equipment. Today it was just a demo on
CCI. My friend came to help and learn more about CCI. Chandra showed off
her commands and Milano was a good girl. The class loved it when Chandra
turned the lights on and picked up my keys. Overall the demo was
informative, the class is for people who want to run/manage parks,
hotels, and leasure activities.